This one’s gonna blow your minds, so buckle your seatbelt…your lap belt and your overhead bar.
I was asked to present at our local networking meeting last month, so I started diving into an article that I had found while doing some research a few month’s back, because the article name peaked my interest…”The Creativity Crisis,” making a strong case that creativity is in sharp decline across America.
Read MoreOne fun fact about me: I had the privilege of my parents homeschooling me through the Charlotte Mason method.
Charlotte Mason was an educator in the 1800s, and was a proponent in teaching the will of the child, rather than solely content. Raising a child to value character, how to think and being consistent with the child’s character development was an active part of her writings.
Read MoreSummary: Beginners who took piano lessons for one hour a week over the course of 11 weeks showed improvements in audio and visual processing. Additionally, musical training helped to boost mood and reduce symptoms of stress and anxiety.
Read MoreAs half of you know, I was able to make the delightful trek to Colorado this Christmas for a family reunion in Palmer Lake, just an hour north of Colorado Springs.
Our trip started with an overnight at the airport since our plane was delayed for three hours (for those of you that warned me about Christmas Eve flying…you were right!) Before I get too deep, you deserve some context of the Krieger family.
Read MoreSimply Music’s Founder, Neil Moore, had the privilege of speaking at TEDx in Jacksonville, Florida on musicality and technology. Here is a blog post of his from 2015 highlighting his key content. - Gabi
Read MoreWhat’s the hardest thing you’ve made yourself to do lately? I’m not talking about the dishes or getting up early to mow. I’m talking something really out of the box, uncomfortable for you. I’m in the mindset that’s it’s critically important to regularly find areas of healthy growth that push us outside of our comfort zones.
Read MoreI've had quite an eclectic upbringing. My dad was adopted from Costa Rica and lived all around the US in his teen formative years, so I've had the privilege of experiencing many parts of the country during my childhood, EXCEPT for Costa Rica.
Read MoreIf you're like anyone I regularly talk to when I tell them I'm a music coach, you're probably thinking about your past music experiences in any capacity. this isn't limited to private music lessons, of course. It's an interesting experience, - one small comment can catapult individuals into a nostalgic era.
Read MoreWhy would anyone stick with music long-term? After all, isn’t it just another hobby? Perhaps that’s how you view music lessons. Or maybe, you are committed to music forever. Either way, let me tell you part of my story to encourage you to keep music as your friend.
Read MoreI can’t remember a time when music wasn’t a part of my life. That’s not to say I considered us a musical family, per se. We didn’t play instruments and only my older sister participated in the church choir. But we sure did listen to it a lot. My parents had a stereo system envied by neighbors. Let’s just say it was a good thing we lived in the country.
Read MoreFrom my parents telling me to practice my piano for 15 minutes and my piano teacher applauding my excellent performance, to the beginning of teaching here at Passion Studios and broadening my musical listening to more jazz and blues, there have been so many people who have influenced my love for music. Since it is November, the month of Thanksgiving, it seems good to go back and gratefully review who has set me on this path of music...
Read MoreAs parents, we make a lot of calculated decisions- sometimes from day one- Breastmilk or bottle, cloth or disposable diapers, public, private, or homeschool. Music lessons or dance.
Then, the very next moment, we find ourselves making fly by the seat of our pants decisions- Handling that first tantrum at the grocery store, what's for lunch, or what to do when your baby strikes a fever for the first time.
Read MoreMy daughter’s Music Rhapsody class sings the same “Hello Tidy-Oh” welcome song every week, and every week (thus far), she responds with the same adorable, bashful smile. And each time, I can’t help but look at her rosy little cheeks and grin, soaking up the innocent, pure joy of the moment.
Read MoreWake up, make some coffee, get all three children off to school while making sure your youngest gets to daycare on time. Go to work... Shoot! Forgot the coffee! Quick stop at Smokey Row, then work.
After a stressful day at work, you spend an hour or more feeling like a taxi cab driver as you whiz your three oldest from school to practice to tutoring sessions and sporting events with a hungry toddler in the backseat... Forgot to put dinner in the crockpot.Looks like all you have time for is Chick-Fil-A before zooming off to guitar lessons with your two oldest while your spouse gets the youngest kiddos ready for bed. Enter Passion Studios. Inevitably, your teacher asks with a smile, "So. How was practice this week?"
Read MoreWelcome to the year, 2022! How is it so far? Is it everything you expected and dreamed and hoped for? Have you kept your New Year’s Resolutions? Maybe you are a realist or a skeptic and have opted out of all the New Year’s hype this year.
Either way, believe it or not, that’s all I am going to say about the New Year here. Today, I want to talk about the rest of your life. What is music to you? Will it hold the same value for you in five years? Ten? Fifty?
Read MoreLast week, my brother, sent me a surprising text message in a group chat we have with our family: “Honest question. Does anyone want to go Christmas caroling this year?”
I’ll be honest with you, “Heck to the no!!” was the first thought that popped into my head after I read his message. Now don’t get me wrong. I am not a Grinch who despises Christmas and refuses to participate in holiday traditions. It is the caroling that I’m not particularly excited about. I guess there is something about singing to a bunch of strangers in the bone chilling December cold that gets my gut all tied up in knots. In fact, I get nervous just thinking about it!
How about you? Are you planning on coming a-caroling through the neighborhood this Christmas? Or does the mere thought of it make you shiver? Or maybe for you, caroling is an essential part of your family’s holiday tradition?